A-Rod delivers again as NY Yankees celebrate at BBWAA awards

View full sizeMitchell Layton/Getty ImagesAlex Rodriguez's postseason heroics earned him an award, and the chance to drop a great one-liner.

NEW YORK -- As I tweeted on Saturday night, Yankees star Alex Rodriguez came up big with another clutch moment, delivering perhaps the funniest line of the 87th annual BBWAA awards.

This year, the writers awarded Rodriguez won the Babe Ruth Award, in recognition of the postseason heroics that had mostly eluded him until he raised his game for the Yankees World Series run.

"What's next?" Rodriguez quipped. "The good guy award?"

Here's an overview of the awards dinner. Star-Ledger Mets writer Brian Costa has a few moments too. He points out what I thought: there were moments where this thing could have been renamed the "New York Mets Celebrity Roast." Not gonna lie: party of me was waiting for Bergen Record colleague and crooner Pete Caldera to break out into his best Dean Martin.

But alas, we weren't that fortunate.

By the numbers: 244
Home runs hit by the Yankees in the regular season, prompting comedian Bill Scheft to point out: "which means 383 home runs were called by John Sterling." Boom, roasted!

The Core Four
Bernie Williams presented his former teammates -- Andy Pettitte, Mariano Rivera, Jorge Posada and Derek Jeter -- with the "Willie, Mickey and the Duke Award."

Williams called his everyday interactions with his teammates "the most fun memories I'll take to my grave." He was even kind of enough to share a few, which got some good laughs.

Williams cracked the Rivera took the same methodical and precise approach to pitching as he did to daily life.

"You should see him make a ham and cheese sandwich," Williams said, as he recalled Rivera picking through pieces of bread and lettuce, until he found what he deemed to be suitable.

But his memories of hanging with Jeter in the players' lounge were the best. Apparently, the two spent a lot of time watching music videos. And every time an attractive woman came on screen, Williams took the opportunity to rib his teammate.

"Do you know that girl? I know you know that girl," Williams would say to Jeter. "Sometimes, he said he did."

Quotable"When you hit .258 lifetime you're not asked to give to many speeches."
Former Yankees bench coach Don Zimmer, who was presented with the William J. Slocum/Jack Lang award for long and meritorious service.

Love for Aaron Boone
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman had kind words for Yankees favorite Aaron Boone, who was honored with the You Gotta Have Heart award for his return from heart surgery this season.

Cashman still calls Boone's classic homer to slay the Red Sox in 2003 one of the greatest moments of his time in baseball, going into detail about the energy in the stadium, the way the team celebrated after the homer, and even Boone's postgame interview on the field, in which he gave a nod to the old stadium's famous ghosts.

Said Cashman: "It was all perfect."

Boone said he was moved by the outpouring of support when he received the news about his heart in spring training.

"It was the most touching thing about this," he said.

(As I recall, in a strange twist, the Yankees were playing the Astros the day the news broke.)

Shout Out
When Cashman came to the podium, he took the opportunity to point out the Yankees contingent seated at a nearby table. "It's the world championship table."

Jersey's Own
A's closer and American League Rookie of the Year Andrew Bailey got a good laugh as he thanked his parents for "allowing me to live rent-free all those offseasons."

High Praise
Twins closer Joe Nathan made a classy gesture, presenting Rivera with the AL Rolaids Relief Man Award. Nathan is a co-winner of the award, but pointed out that Rivera was a role model not only to young people but to fellow players in the game.

"I know I try my hardest to follow in this guy's footsteps," Nathan said. "He doesn't make it easy a lot of the time."

My ApologiesSo I wrote this post when I got home last night, except for some reason, I neglected to hit the button that puts it online. Oops. I think I have a theory as to what may have led to this mix-up...